Leon Panetta

Iraq

As a member of the Iraq Study Group, Panetta kept a close eye on the situation in that country. The group called for American forces to begin withdrawal from Iraq to prove that the U.S. will not stay there indefinitely. The group also called for extended diplomatic efforts and engagement across the Middle East, including with Iran and Syria.

Panetta has suggested the U.S. set clear benchmarks for the Iraqi government to meet in order to continue to receive American support. He has argued that the end goal must be self-sovereignty and national reconciliation. For this reason, he favors a specific withdrawal date for U.S. troops from Iraq.

“The president and the Congress should make very clear to the Iraqis that there is no open-ended commitment to our involvement,” he wrote in an op-ed in the New York Times. “As the Iraq Study Group recommended, there must be a price to be paid if the Iraqis continue to fail to make good on key reforms.”Panetta, Leon, "What About Those Other Iraq Deadlines?" New York Times, April 4, 2007

Furthermore, Panetta has argued that the case for the Iraq war was based on faulty intelligence. “In a democratic society, winning a war depends on the support of the people. And the support of the people depends on their trust that they are being told the truth by their leaders,” he wrote.“Leon E. Panetta,” New York Times, Jan. 5, 2009

Torture

Before joining the Obama administration, Panetta was an outspoken opponent of harsh interrogation tactics used on terrorist detainees in the George W. Bush administration. “We cannot and we must not use torture under any circumstances. We are better than that,” he wrote in 2008 for the Washington Monthly.Panetta, Leon, “No Torture. No Exceptions,” Washington Monthly, Winter 2008

The American public, Panetta argues, has been convinced that torture is acceptable because it is afraid of future attacks on U.S. soil. However, Panetta says that the country’s founders created a new nation that would “recognize that every individual has an inherent right to personal dignity.” According to Panetta, torture is a violation of those basic rights. “We have preached these values to the world … it's what is supposed to make our leaders different from every tyrant, dictator, or despot.”

At his confirmation hearings in January 2009, he said that he would not allow the CIA to torture prisoners, to maintain secret prisons or to force the transfer of prisoners to countries that allow torture.Warrick, Joby and Pincus, Walter, "CIA Nominee Panetta Vows An End to Disputed Tactics," The Washington Post, Feb. 6, 2009

In August 2009, Panetta oversaw the release of a 2004 report on the holding of high-profile terror suspects by the CIA. The report indicated that several of the detainees were abused. The report, by the CIA's inspector general, said the agency's efforts to provide "systematic, clear and timely guidance" to interrogators was "inadequate at first" but "improved considerably."Office of the Inspector General, "Counterterrorism, Detention and Interrogation Activities," Central Intelligence Agency, May 7, 2004

Pelosi Controversy

In spring 2009, Panetta clashed with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) over when the speaker was informed that enhanced interrogation techniques such as waterboarding were used on terrorist detainees by CIA employees. In May 2009, Panetta released documents stating that Pelosi was informed in September 2002 of the use of such tactics; Pelosi fiercely denied that she had that knowledge until early 2003. Panetta said that the CIA's records could be erroneous, but defended his employees and agency.

"Let me be clear: It is not our policy or practice to mislead Congress. That is against our laws and our values. As the Agency indicated previously in response to Congressional inquiries, our contemporaneous records from September 2002 indicate that CIA officers briefed truthfully on the interrogation of Abu Zubaydah, describing 'the enhanced techniques that had been employed.' Ultimately, it is up to Congress to evaluate all the evidence and reach its own conclusions about what happened." Panetta stated.Sargent, Greg, The Plum Line at WhoRunsGov.com, "CIA: We’re Right About Torture Briefings, But Please Don’t Take Our Word For It," May 15, 2009

But Pelosi's version of events had some Republicans calling for her ouster.

Iran

The CIA has played a big role in the Iranian nuclear negotiations. Iran disclosed that it had bulit a seperate uranium-enrichment plant in Qum in Sept. 2009, an announcement that led America and its allies to impose tighter sanctions on the country.

The CIA had known about the plant for more than three years, and Panetta and his staff had worked with European intelligence agencies on a report about the plant in summer 2009. "It was built into a mountain; obviously that raised question marks," 

Panetta told

magazine in October 2009. "We spent the next months trying to get better intel about what was going on there ... and conducting covert operations into that area."